West Plains Bank and Trust in Missouri, No. 11 on this year's Best Banks to Work For ranking, wins high marks for constructive training, employee development, team culture — as well as excellent benefits.

Bankers should stop thinking of small companies as difficult to serve, Comerica's Brian Haney says; "How does succeeding in small business make the retail bank stronger?"

"We'll be taking steps to offset expense pressures," CEO Curtis Farmer told analysts after the company reported an 11% year-over-year jump in costs and falling profits.

Comerica CEO Curt Farmer and CFO James Herzog as well as the company itself face a purported class action by shareholders for allegedly making false and misleading statements about the Dallas company's oversight of the Treasury Department's Direct Express program.

The rapid pace of innovation, reliance on a web of vendors and regulatory scrutiny means fourth-party risk is a more pressing consideration than in the past.

The Dallas-based company, which saw $3.7 billion of deposits withdrawn after Silicon Valley Bank failed, now predicts average deposits will fall 14% to 15% compared with last year. However, the pace of outflow is slowing, say the bank's executives.

A Comerica Bank executive admitted to major failures in its handling of the Treasury Department's Direct Express program, including data and resolved fraud disputes sent to a vendor's office in Lahore, Pakistan, a "serious" contract violation.

The Dallas-based bank, whose deposit base is more commercial-focused, has seen significant outflows in deposits over the past year. But last quarter's declines were "better than we expected," and there are other signs that the environment may moderate this year, its CFO said.

The Dallas-based company is expanding in the Southeast and the Mountain West, and overhauling its digital systems, as part of a plan that executives say will pay off over a two- to five-year period.

The industry must adapt quickly to the changing preferences of entrepreneurs and the innovation of nonbanks such as PayPal and Square, according to speakers at American Banker's Small Biz Banking Conference. Traditional players such as U.S. Bancorp and Comerica say they're making the necessary investments.